Fruit press

ABSTRACT

A fruit press in which a press punch is moveable toward a bed member for pressing fruit mash to express juice therefrom. A grate band having spaced bars is moveable over the bed member and over the the grate band is a filter cloth. The mash is charged onto the cloth at one side of the press and is conveyed into the press by the filter cloth. An automatic controller controls the press punch so the mash on the cloth has the juice expressed therefrom over a period of about 2 to 4 minutes.

United States Patent [191 Gunkel 1March 13, 1973 1 FRUIT PRESS [75]Inventor: Otto Gunkel, 71 Heilbronn, Germany [73] Assignee: SchenkFilterbau Gesellschaft mit Beschrankter Haftung, Waldstetten, Germany; apart interest [22] Filed: Feb. 24, 1971 [21] App1.No.: 118,361

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Feb. 25, 1970 Germany ..P 20 08739.2

[52] US. Cl 100/118, 100/151 [51] .Int. Cl. ..B30b 5/04 [58] FieldofSearch ..100/1l8,116,119,120,151, 100/152, 153, 154; 15/77 [56]References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 7/1901 Long ..100/194 X Teel .Q..15/77 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1,502,244 4/1969 Germany..100/1l8 1,502,249 2/1969 Germany ..100/1l8 Primary ExaminerPeterFeldman AttorneyWalter Becker 5? ABSTRACT A fruit press in which a presspunch is moveable toward a bed member for pressing fruit mash to expressjuice therefrom. A grate band having spaced bars is moveable over thebed member and over the the grate band is a filter cloth. The mash ischarged onto the cloth at one side of the press and is conveyed into thepress by the filter cloth. An automatic controller controls the presspunch so the mash on the cloth has the juice expressed therefrom over aperiod of about 2 to 4 minutes.

12 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures PATENTEDHAR 1 3191s SHEET 10F 3 In ven tor;

PATENTEDHARI 31915 ,720,159 SHEET 3 or 3 =9. 7; A; r r

Inventor:

FRUIT PRESS The present invention relates to a fruit press with a pressstage in the form of a hand press, and with a grate band actuatedstep-wise by a charging device for the fruit mash to be squeezed, saidgrate band leading to the hand press. The grate band comprisestransverse bars which, near the ends, are connected to transportingchains, or the like. The said grate band passes within the range of thepress stage over a press table. The fruit press referred to abovefurthermore comprises an endless filter cloth which, at least within therange of the press stage, rests on the grate band.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a fruit press of theabove mentioned type which will eliminate any difficulties with regardto the guide of the filter cloth and will also eliminate anydifficulties with regard to cleaning and squeezing the fruit mash.

These objects and other objects and advantages of the invention willappear more clearly from the following specification, in connection withthe accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 diagrammatically illustrates a longitudinal section through afruit press according to the invention, said section being taken alongthe line I-I of FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 is a section taken along the'line II-Il of FIG.

FIG. 3 illustrates on a considerably larger scale than FIG. 1 thatportion of FIG. 1 which is located within the dot-dash circle marked bythe reference character III.

FIG. 4 represents a section taken along the line lV- IV of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 illustrates on a larger scale than FIG. 1, a portion of FIG. 1taken along the section V-V of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 shows a section of the press, said section being taken along theline Vl-VI of FIG. 1.

The fruit press according to the present invention is characterizedprimarily in that the discharge paths for the squeezed-out juice, asthey are defined by the transverse bars, have a cross section of suchmagnitude that the squeezed-out juice will be able to flow offsubstantially under no pressure while the filter cloth will smoothlyrest on the grate band over its full width. The fruit press according tothe invention is furthermore characterized in that the transporting stepof the grate band equals substantially the pressing or squeezingduration of the press stage. Furthermore, the squeezing duration is socontrolled that the fruit mash which rests on the filter cloth withoutbeing laterally confined will, in a single squeezing operation lastingfrom about two to four minutes, be de-juiced to at least 70 percent in acloudfree manner.

Numerous thorough tests have shown surprisingly that when the dischargepaths for the squeezed juice have a sufficient cross section and whenthe squeezing is effected sufficiently slowly, the increase in pressurewithin the mash has such a relationship to the solidification of thefirst rather thin liquid mash that no lateral confinement of the fluidmash is necessary while a proper de-juicing of the mash will,nevertheless, be assured.

For a fast de-juicing of the mash, it is also important that thesqueezing operation is effected in a single step because with amulti-step squeezing, the partially squeezed out mash will again relaxand will suck back the juice into its pores without causing a change-offof the mash or otherwise bringing about a change which could aid thefurther squeezing out of the juice. Rather, when effecting multiplesuccessive squeezing operations the respective previous condition has tobe obtained before a further progress in the squeezing can be realized,so that the time therebetween is lost.

It is, therefore, advantageous to operate with as large surface punchesas possible, if it is intended during one single pressing operation toobtain a great quantity of juice, while the squeezing has to becompleted in one working operation.

It is, indeed, rather surprising that it is possible by means of a handor punch press to be able to properly de-juice fruit mash without alateral confinement of the mash on the grate band. This result requiresthat the discharge paths for the squeezed-out juice, which paths aredefined by the transverse rods, have a sufficiently large cross sectionin order to permit the juice to flow off without being under pressure,so that by a damming up of the juice, or a clogging up of the dischargepaths, no undue high pressure will build up in the mash, inasmuch assuch undue pressure may bring about a lateral squeezing out of the mashbetween the press punch and the grate band. With the heretofore knownfruit press, which forms the starting point for the present invention,the press table is provided with longitudinal grooves aiding in thedischarge of the juice. The employment of such grooves is not expedientbecause these grooves can easily clog and are difficult to clean.Moreover, the flow-off discharge sections defined by such grooves willnot be sufficient when the filter cloth which covers the transverse barscan, with the fruit mash, penetrate between the transverse bars of thegrate band to such an extent that it will close up the spaces betweensaid transverse bars to a considerable extent.

Therefore, it is provided according to a further development of theinvention, that the press table is designed substantially plane, andthat the transverse rods of the grate band are arranged spaced from eachother by approximately 3 millimeters while having a height of at least 8millimeters.

The slight distance between the transverse bars of the grate band isnecessary in order to assure that the filter cloth will not be pressedinto the intermediate spaces between adjacent transverse bars. If thefilter cloth would be pressed too far between the transverse bars, thismay result in the fact that a lower pressure will prevail in these areasthan in the remaining sections of the mash so that the latter will notbe completely squeezed, but will remain moist. Moreover, there existsthe danger that at these areas, the mash will be pressed through themeshes of the filter cloth, or will at least be pressed into said meshesto a considerable extent. Therefore, an increase in the spacing betweenthe transverse bars is inexpedient. The stated height of the bars willthen be sufficient to such an extent that between the bars, even with amash under full pressure, a hollow chamber will remain which will besufficient for a-pressure-free juice discharge, even when the presstable is substantially plane.

The edges of the transverse bars of the grate band .may at least on thatside be rounded off which faces the filter cloth so that the filtercloth will at the edges of ,the bars not be subjected to any undue wearand in particular will not be subjected to forces which may exert acutting effect.

Also, the filter cloth has a certain influence on the juice withdrawaloperation and the proper function of the machine, because the thicknessof the filter cloth and the width of its meshes influence the withdrawaland flow-off of the squeezed-out juice and the quantity of juiceabsorbed by the cloth and also have an influence on the clogging of thecloth and the possibility of cleaning the cloth.

Experience has proved that the filter cloth which covers the grate bandmay have a weight of from 200 to 800 grams per square meter and may havea mash width of a maximum of 5 millimeters. Preferred, is a filter clothwith a surface weight of from 400 to 500 grams per square meter and amash width of approximately 1 meter.

As mentioned above, a lateral confinement of the mash located on thegrate band is not necessary during the squeezing-out operation. It can,however, not be avoided that the mash, during the squeezing operation,slightly flows outwardly and that therefore marginal zones will form inwhich the full pressing pressure will not prevail. These marginal zonestherefore remain somewhat moist and reduce the maximum possible yield infruit juice. In order to assure a proper squeezing out also of themarginal zones, an elastic strip edge may be provided at the bottom sideof the otherwise smooth pre-punch at those areas which are located abovethe margins of the mash layer applied to the grate band. Within therange of this strip, an increased pressure will be exerted upon themargins of the mash layer which pressure will bring about a propersqueezing out of the mash in these marginal areas, as a result of which,the withdrawal of juice will be further improved. Generally, the presspunch should be smooth on its side so that no hollow chambers will forminto which quantities of squeezed-out juice could enter. Thesequantities of juice cannot generally flow off from the top side of themash layer, but remain on the mash so that after the squeezing pressurehas been relieved, they are again absorbed by the mash. A grooved bottomside of the squeezing punch therefore would result in a decreased yieldin juice.

A similar effect, as obtainable with elastic strips on the bottom sideof the press punch can, of course, also be realized with elastic stripsprovided at the margins of the filter cloth and extending on both sidesof the applied mash layer. These strips have a relatively low height anddo not serve as a lateral confinement of the mash layer, but serve toexert an additional pressure which will bring about also a propersqueezing out of the marginal portions of the mash as described above.The elastic strips on the press punch and/or the filter cloth mayconsist, for instance, of foam rubber material, or foamed syntheticmaterial.

The flat engagement of the filter cloth on the grate band also withinthe region of the press stage, makes possible not only a proper guidingof this filter cloth, but offers the possibility of employingparticularly simple and simultaneously effective means for guiding thefilter cloth. Thus, according to one embodiment of the invention, thefilter cloth has its longitudinal marginal areas provided with beadswhich extend over the lateral margins of the grate band and preferablyand additionally engage guiding grooves of deviating rollers for thefilter cloth. In this way, the filter cloth is along its entire lengthalong which it rests on the grate band guided precisely parallel on thegrate band. Also, at the deviating or reversing rollers, such lateralguiding takes place independently of whether the beads engage themarginal areas of the filter cloth at the end faces of the reversingrollers or whether they engage guiding grooves. Therefore, a lateraldeviation of the cloth during the operation of the fruit press accordingto the invention is impossible. According to a preferred embodiment ofthe invention, the beads are formed by V- belts and the reversingrollers are provided with corresponding V-grooves. The application ofV-belts not only assures a good lateral guiding, but also simultaneouslyassures a proper transfer of driving forces to the filter cloth whichtogether with the grate band during the working of the machine has to bemoved or advanced after each pressing or squeezing operation by thelength of the press stage.

As will be evident from the above, the respective prevailing flow-offcross section for the fruit juice is of decisive importance. Thisflow-off cross section is determined by the space between the transversebars of the grate band. When squeezing out the fruit mash, however, pulpis pressed through the filter cloth resting on the grate band so thatthis pulp will enter the spaces between the transverse bars. Withincreasing time of operation, therefore, the said intermediate spacesbetween the transverse bars clog up more and more so that the flow-offcross sections are reduced and consequently also the working quality ofthe press is affected. For this reason, it is of foremost importancethat during the operation of the press, the grate band is repeatedly andcarefully cleaned. In order to assure that this cleaning of the grateband may be effected automatically during the operation of the fruitpress, according to a preferred embodiment of the present inventionthere is provided a brush which is moved parallel to the transversebars. Rotating brushes extending transverse across the grate band, bringabout only a superficial cleaning of the grate band inasmuch as theirbristles do not enter into the spaces between the transverse bars andtherefore cannot properly remove the pulp from these spaces as it isnecessary for proper operation of the fruit press over a longer periodof time. In contrast thereto, with a brush movable parallel to thetransverse bars, the pulp between the transverse bars is pushed outtherefrom so that a proper cleaning of the grate band will be assured.

A brush system suitable for a fruit press according to the presentinvention is, in a particularly simple manner, formed by a band whichextends transverse to the grate band and over the entire width of thegrate band while being passed over reversing rollers, one of which isdriven. This band of the brush system is endless and contains aplurality of brush bodies or is covered with bristles. Such brush bandnot only will assure a highly satisfactory cleaning of the grate band,but will also require only a relatively small space so that the brushband can be arranged on the discharge side of the machine over asubstantially horizontal section of the grate band. The mounting of thebrush band in this way has the particular advantage that below the grateband a pan may be mounted for receiving the pulp material which has beenremoved by the brush band.

I is employed.-

Referring now to the drawings in detail, the fruit press illustratedtherein has a pressing stage in the form of a punch press whichcomprises a press table 1 and a press punch 2 located above the presstable and adapted to be lowered and lifted relative thereto. The presstable 1 is mounted on transverse beams 3 of a press frame which alsocomprises the lateral vertical supports or beams 4 and longitudinalbeams 5, 6 interconnecting said vertical beams 4. In addition to thetransverse beams 3, additional transverse beams 7 are connected to andarranged between the vertical beams 4. The transverse beams 7 arearranged in spaced relationship to and above the press table 1 whilecylinders 9 of three hydraulic cylinder piston units rest by means of acommon assembly plate 8 against the bottom side of said transverse beams7. The pistons 10 of said cylinder piston units are connected to thepress punches 2. The arrangement furthermore comprises a pump 12 drivenby an electric motor 11 and adapted whenever desired through conduits(not shown) to convey oil under pressure to the cylinder 9. The supplyof the oil under pressure for lowering and lifting the press punch 2 iscontrolled by means of a control device vl3 which is connected to thepump or the electric motor 11 pertaining thereto. The control may beeffected in conformity with time or in conformity with the respectivedesired pressure. If the control is effected in conformity with therespective pressure, a pressure gauge 14 will be arranged within thepump unit 12. The employment of three piston cylinder units makes itpossible to uniformly actuate a punch 2 with a rather great surfacewhereby a uniform pressure can be exerted upon large surfaces withoutthe necessity of making the punch particularly rigid or sturdy.

A grate band 21 passesover the press table 1. The purpose of this band21 consists in conveying the fruit mash to be squeezed by the fruitpress according to the present invention, from a charging device 22 to apress stage, in other words, to the press table below the press punch.As will be more clearly evident from FIGS. 3 and 4, the grate bandcomprises transverse bars 23, which near their ends are connected tochain members 24. According. to the illustrated embodiment, these chainmembers 24 comprise plate-shaped sections 25, the ends of which areprovided with rolled-in tongues 26 and 27 for receiving hinge bolts 28adapted to receive chain links. The transverse bars 23 areconnected tothe plate-shaped sections of thechain links, for instance, by means ofrivets 29. The grate band 21 is, at both ends of the press table 1passed over reversing rollers 30 and 31 and while guided by furtherrollers 32 passes below the transverse beams 3 carrying the press table1 from the reversing roller 31 at the exit end of the press table backto the reversing roller 30 arranged at the input end of the press table.The reversing rollers are expediently formed by sprocket wheels engagedby transverse webs of the chain links, said transverse webs being formedby the rolled-in tongues 26. In this way, a slip-free and thereforeprecisely defined advance of the grate band will be possible. Forpurposes of driving the grate band, the deviating roller 31, preferablyarranged at the exit end of the press table 1,

Within the range of the press table 1, the grate band 21 is covered by afilter cloth 33. This cloth 33 is passed over deviating rollers 34 and35 of which roller 34 is located in the extension of the press table 1in front of the input side roller 30 for the grate band whereas theother deviating roller 35 is arranged in spaced relationship to' andbehind the exit side roller 31 for the grate band 21. Further deviatingrollers 36 serve for returning the filter cloth from the exit sideroller 35 to the inlet side roller 34. The filter cloth likewise passesbelow the transverse beam 3 of the press frame and simultaneously passesalong the there prevailing section of the grate band 21. Rollers 37journalled on the lower longitudinal beams 5 of the press frame supportthose returning sections of the grate band 21 and the filter cloth 33from below which are located below the transverse beam 3 of the presspunch. The filter cloth must advance together with the grate band in thedirection from the charging device 22 to the press stage. In order toobtain a definite advance also for the filter cloth, it is expedient toprovide the filter cloth with a feed of its own. To this end, with theillustrated fruit press, the exit side roller 35 is driven in anyconvenient manner, for instance, by a motor M. In order also, in thisinstance, to assure a possibly slip-free movement of the filter cloth,the outer margin of the filter cloth is at its bottom side provided witha V-beltshaped bead 38 (FIGS. 4 and 5) which engage correspondingV-grooves 39 provided in rollers 34 to 36 and especially in the drivenroller 35. In addition to yielding a slip-free drive, the said V-shapedbeads impart upon the filter cloth a good lateral guiding so that thefilter cloth will be prevented from laterally wondering or shimmying onthe deviating rollers in view of differences in the tension of thefilter cloth. At the same time, a good guiding of the filter cloth 33within the region of the press table 1 on the grate band is realized bythe fact that the filter cloth which rests substantially flat on thegrate band has its margins protrude at the ends of the transverse bars23 while the V-belt-shaped bead rests upon the ends of the transversebars.

A further filter cloth 41 passes over deviating rollers 42 which arejourna'lled on the ends of the press punch 2, for instance, by means ofarms 43. Filter cloth 41 passes in two layers along the bottom side ofthe press punch 2. Inasmuch as, during thev pressing or squeezingoperation said filter cloth 41 will, during the squeezing out of thejuice, cover the fruit mash on the filter cloth 33 which covers thegrate band 21, the filter cloth d1 may also be designated as cover clothin order to distinguish it from the filter cloth resting on the grateband.

At the inlet side of the press stage, the press table 1 is extendedbeyond the press punch 2 to a point below the charging device 22. Thischarging device has a funnel 51 or another suitable supply container forthe fruit from which the juice has to be squeezed out and also has amill 52 adjacent said funnel, and a chute 53 leading from said milldirectly to the grate band 21. Chute 53 has its end arranged adjustablein spaced relationship to and above the grate band so that the freshlyground fruit can be charged onto the grate band with a predetenninedlayer thickness and over a predetermined width, when the grate band withthe filter cloth 33 advances in the direction toward the press stage.The thickness of the charged fruit layer may amount to from 3 to 5centimeters depending on the type and the condition of the fruit to bepressed out.

The advancing step of the grate band and of the filter cloth has alength which approximately equals the length of the press punch 2 sothat with each step, a layer of fresh fruit mash will be located belowthe entire press punch. Following each feeding or advancing step, thepress punch 2 is lowered slowly so that with continuously increasingpressure, the fruit mash has its juice withdrawn within a time period offrom about 2 to 4 minutes. The juice squeezed out from the fruit mashpenetrates substantially the filter cloth 33 on the grate band and flowsthrough the spaces between the transverse bars 23 of the grate band offfrom the substantially plane press table 1. The juice is collected injuice troughs 54 which surround the press table 1 and by means ofnon-illustrated hoses connected to connections 55 of the troughs isconveyed to suitable containers. A minor portion of the juice is pressedout from the mash in upward direction and is discharged through pores ofthe cover cloth 41 toward the side.

According to the illustrated embodiment, the transverse bars 23 of thegrate band are spaced from each other by a distance of about 3millimeters, while the height of said transverse bars is about 8millimeters. These dimensions will assure that on one side the filtercloth 33 cannot be pressed too deeply between the transverse bars of thegrate band and that also the mash cannot be pressed too strongly intothe meshes of the filter cloth. Simultaneously, with this relativelyshort distances, no zones are formed in which, in view of the escape ofthe filter cloth, a reduced pressure could form, as a result of which,the juice would be withdrawn from the fruit mash only incompletely. Onthe other hand, the height of the transverse bars 23 will assure asufficient cross section of the flow-off troughs defined by thetransverse bars so as to assure a pressure-free discharge of the fruitjuice. This pressure-free discharge of the fruit juice will, in itsturn, bring about that within the mash, no unduly high counterpressureof the juice will build up which would otherwise result in the flowingof the mash all.over the grate band. Therefore, it is surprisinglypossible to leave the fruit mash moved onto the grate band by means ofthe filter cloth without lateral confinements. Consequently, asmentioned above, the filter cloth 33 may flatly rest upon the grate band21. By means of the control device 13, as just mentioned, the squeezingtime may be adjusted to from 2 to 4 minutes depending on the quality ofthe fruit mash, so that the juice will have sufficient time to leave thefruit mash. The juice withdrawal as realized during actual experimentsamounts to from 70 to 80 percent. Moreover, the obtained juice is freefrom cloud formations.

In view of the absence of lateral confinements, it cannot be assuredthat the margins of the deposited mash layer are completely vertical andin particular remain vertical during the squeezing operation. Rather acer tain inclination of these margins is to be expected which will bringabout that the marginal zones of the mash during the squeezing operationare not under the load of the full pressure. In this way, certain lossesin juice may be encountered. In order to avoid these losses, accordingto the embodiment of the present invention, the bottom side of the presspunch 2 and also the top side of the filter cloth 33 resting upon thegrate band 21 are, within the region of the margins, equipped withelastic strips 56, 57. These strips will assure that also the marginalportions of the mash layer will be subjected to the full press pressureso that also in this area a complete withdrawal of the juice will beeffected. It is a matter of course that it will suffice to provide oneof such steps only either on the punch 2 or on the filter cloth 33. Theelastic strips are advantageously made of foam rubber material or of anelastic material of synthetic substance.

The property of the employed filter cloth is of importance with regardto the operation of the press according to the invention. Asparticularly suitable, it has been found to employ filter cloths whichhave a surface weight of about from 200 to 800 grams per square meter,and a mesh width up to a maximum of 5 millimeters. In this instance, itis expedient to employ a somewhat coarser cloth for the filter clothresting on the grate band so that a good discharge of the juice will bepossible. The cover cloth should have good suction properties so thatthe upper press cloth will draw or suck up the juice which leaves themash in upward direction, and when the squeezing pressure subsides willnot return the juice to the fruit mash, which at that time likewise hasa good suction ability. Furthermore, the surface weight of the filtercloth resting on the grate band may be somewhat higher than the surfaceweight of the cover cloth because the cover cloth has two layers.Preferred values for the upper and lower filter cloth do not differ verymuch from each other, and with regard to the surface weight amount toapproximately from 400 to 500 grams per square meter, while the valuesof the mesh width are about 1 millimeter.

Following the squeezing out of the juice, the press punch 2 is liftedagain, and subsequently the grate band 21 with the filter cloth 33 isadvanced by the length of the press punch. A new mash layer is broughtinto the press stage, while the squeezed-out pulp layer is moved out ofthe press stage. The cover cloth 41 is likewise moved because the pulpparticles have dug themselves into the cover cloth. The pulp layer alsoadheres strongly to the lower filter cloth so that the pulp layer withinthe region of the exit deviating roller 42 for the cover cloth willcontinue adhering to the filter cloth 33, while the cover cloth rollsoff the pulp layer. The separation of the pulp layer from the covercloth is effected practically without leaving any residues so thatadditional cleaning means for the cover cloth will not be necessary. Inorder to assure that also a proper separation of the pulp layer from thefilter cloth 33 will occur, beater means 58 are provided within theregion between the exit side roller 31 for the grate band and thedeviating roller 35 for the filter cloth. These beater means will, fromthe bottom side, beat loose the pulp layer lying on the filter cloth, sothat the pulp layer will, at the exit side deviating roller 35 for thefilter cloth 33, peel off from the filter cloth and drop into acontainer 59 provided therefor. Moreover, behind the exit side deviatingroller 35 for the filter cloth 33 there is provided a brush 60.

Also, for cleaning the grate band, there is provided a brush 61. Thisbrush 61 is located on the exit side of the press within the rangebetween the end of the press table 1 and the exit side deviating roller31. Brush 61 is thus located between the top side of the grate band 21and the filter cloth 33 which passes over a housing 62 which covers thebrush 61 from the top. Brush 61 is formed by an endless band 63 passingover two rollers 64 and 65 which are arranged within the region of thelateral margins of the grate band 21 so that the endless band 63 extendsover the entire width of the grate band 21. Of these two rollers, 64 and65, one of the rollers is driven and may be formed, forinstance,directly by a motor of the external rotor type so that no additionalspace is required for the drive. Band 63 is covered with brush bodies66, but could, of course, instead be covered with bristles. It will beobvious that the brush bodies 66 guided parallel to the grate bars ofthe grate band 21 have their brushes adapted to engage deeply betweenthe transverse bars of the grate band so that a proper cleaning of thegrate bandwill be assured also within the region of the spaces betweenthe transverse bars. Therefore, these spaces will always be free frompulp material and will even over long periods of operation assure aproper discharge of the juice and thereby a proper functioning of thepress. Below brush 61 there is provided a container 67 for collectingthe pulp material which has been removed by means of brush 61. Thiscontainer may be moved laterally'out of the fruit press in order todiscard the pulp.

If the above mentioned steps for cleaning the filter cloth and the grateband should not be sufficient, further washing and brushing devices maybe provided within the region of the returning sections of the grateband and the filter cloth. Such additional washing and brushing devicesare diagrammatically illustrated in the drawing and designated with thenumerals 68 and 69. It may also be mentioned that a substantially planepress table is of advantage for a proper operation of the fruit pressaccording to the invention, because such a table is always kept clean bythe advancing transverse bars of the grate band so that a collection ofslime in the troughs cannot occur while the grate band 6 can be keptclean by passing through corresponding cleaning stations. The provisionof discharge troughs in the press table for increasing the dischargecross section is not particularly advantageous because these troughscannot be kept clean in a simple manner. Therefore, the cross section ofthe bars and the distance between the bars is of major importance. Theedges of the transverse bars of the grate band are rounded, as shown inFIG. 4, in order to avoid undue stresses of the associated filter cloth33 at the ends of the bars.

It is, of course, to be understood that the present invention is, by nomeans, limited to the particular showing in the drawings, but alsocomprises any modifications within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is: g

1. In a press for pressing juice from fruit mash and the like: a bedmember, a press punch moveable toward and away from the bed member anddefining therewith a pressing space, said bed member having one endprojecting beyond the corresponding end of said press punch and acharging device above said one end of said bed member, an endless grateband having an upper reach on top of said bed member and a lower reachbeneath said bed member, said grate band comprising longitudinallyspaced transverse bars and flexible elements at the ends of said barsinterconnecting the bars, an endless filter cloth having an upper reachresting on top of the upper reach of said grate band and a lower reachbeneath said bed member, deviating rollers at opposite ends of said bedmember about which the grate band and filter cloth pass, said filtercloth and grate band being moveable to convey material supplied to thefilter cloth by said charging device into pressing position in thepress, drive means for intermittently driving said filter cloth andgrate band a distance about equal to the length of the pressing space inthe press, control means controlling the operation of at least saidpress punch for controlling the pressing of material in said pressingspace, and a brush device spanning the grate band and having workingmovement thereof in a direction substantially parallel to longitudinaldirection of transverse bars in combination therewith, said transversebars being spaced apart such a distance that there is provided heightgreater than double the spacing from each other for the flow of liquidtherebetween during a pressing operation to be substantially pressurefree subject to complete cleaning being made possible between transversebars to assure flow of liquid free of turbidity and unencumbered byadhering residue that would reduce cross section as to flow of liquid.

2. ln a press for pressing juice from fruit mash and the like: a bedmember, a press punch moveable toward and away from the bed member anddefining therewith a pressing space, said bed member having one endprojecting beyond the corresponding end of said press punch and acharging device above said one end of said bed member, an endless grateband having an upper reach on top of said bed member and a lower reachbeneath said bed member, said grate band comprising longitudinallyspaced transverse bars and flexible elements at the ends of said barsinterconnecting the bars, an endless filter cloth having an upper reachresting on top of the upper reach of said grate band and a lower reachbeneath said bed member, deviating rollers at opposite ends of said bedmember about which the grate band and filter cloth pass, said filtercloth and grate band being moveable to convey material supplied to thefilter cloth by said charging device into pressing position in thepress, drive means for intermittently driving said filter cloth andgrate band a distance about equal to the length of the pressing space inthe press, control means controlling the operation of at least saidpress punch for controlling the pressing of material in said pressingspace, said transverse bars being spaced apart such a distance that theflow of liquid therebetween during a pressing operation is substantiallypressure free, elastic strips being mounted on said filter cloth alongthe lateral edges of the region where material to be pressed isdeposited on the filter cloth, and elastic strips on said press puncharranged in opposition to the elastic strips on the filter cloth forcooperation therewith during a pressing operation to confine thematerial being pressed in the lateral direction.

3. [n a press according to claim 2 in which said elastic strips areformed of a foamed material.

4. In a press for pressing juice from fruit mash and the like: a bedmember, a press punch moveable toward and away from the bed member anddefining therewith a pressing space, said bed member having one endprojecting beyond the corresponding end of said press punch and acharging device above said one end of said bed member, an endless grateband having an upper reach on top of said bed member and a lower reachbeneath said bed member, said grate band comprising longitudinallyspaced transverse bars and flexible elements at the ends of said barsinterconnecting the bars, an endless filter cloth having an upper reachresting on top of the upper reach of said grate band and a lower reachbeneath said bed member, deviating rollers at opposite ends of said bedmember about which the grate band and filter cloth pass, said filtercloth and grate band being moveable to convey material supplied to thefilter cloth by said charging device into pressing position in thepress, drive means for intermittently driving said filter cloth andgrate band a distance about equal to the length of the pressing space inthe press, control means controlling the operation of at least saidpress punch for controlling the pressing of material in said pressingspace, said transverse bars being spaced apart such a distance that theflow of liquid therebetween during a pressing operation is substantiallypressure free, V-belts being provided on said filter cloth at the insideof the marginal portions thereof and laterally outwardly from thelateral edges of said grate band, and deviating rollers for said filtercloth at the ends of the reaches thereof and grooved to receive saidV-belts.

5. A press according to claim 4 which includes brush means for cleaningsaid grate band and moveable laterally to the grate band andsubstantially parallel to said transverse bars and engaging said grateband on the filter cloth side thereof.

6. In a press for pressing juice from fruit mash and the like: a bedmember, a press punch moveable toward and away from the bed member anddefining therewith a pressing space, said bed member having one endprojecting beyond the corresponding end of said press punch and acharging device above said one end of said bed member, an endless grateband having an upper reach on top of said bed member and a lower reachbeneath said bed member, said grate band comprising longitudinallyspaced transverse bars and flexible elements at the ends of said barsinterconnecting the bars, an endless filter cloth having an upper reachresting on top of the upper reach of said grate band and a lower reachbeneath said bed member, deviating rollers at oppbsite ends of said bedmember about which the grate band and filter cloth pass, said filtercloth and grate band being moveable to convey material supplied to thefilter cloth by said charging device into pressing position in thepress, drive means for intermittently driving said filter cloth andgrate band a distance about equal to the length of the pressing space inthe press, control means controlling the operation of at least saidpress punch for controlling the pressing of material in said pressingspace, said transverse bars being spaced apart such a distance that theflow of liquid therebetween during a pressing operation is substantiallypressure free, brush means for cleaning said grate band and moveablelaterally to the grate band and substantially parallel to saidtransverse bars and engaging said grate band on the filter cloth sidethereof, said brush means comprising an endless band having brush bodiesthereon, and support rollers at the sides of said grate band forsupporting said endless band and at least one roller being driven, saidbrush bodies engaging a substantial length of said grateband,

7. A press according to claim 6 in WhlCh said brush means engages saidgrate band outwardly from the end of said bed member which is oppositesaid charging device, and a collector beneath said grate band to receivematerial dislodged therefrom by said brush means.

8. A press according to claim 6 which includes a cover cloth on the sideof said press punch which faces said bed member.

9. A press according to claim 6, in which said brush means is located atthe exit side of the pressing space over an essentially horizontallyextending section of said grate band and below said grate band there isa container for collecting pulp material which has been removed by saidbrush means.

10; A press according to claim 6, in which said filter cloth is free ofrestriction laterally outside of fruit mash receiving location.

11. A press according to claim 6 in which said bed member issubstantially planar and said transverse bars are spaced apart about 3millimeters while being about 8 millimeters in height, the corners ofsaid bars facing said filter cloth being rounded.

12. A press according to claim 6 in which said filter cloth has a meshof about 1 millimeter to about 5 millimeters, and has a weight of fromabout 200 grams up to about 800 grams per square meter.

# i i t

1. In a press for pressing juice from fruit mash and the like: a bedmember, a press punch moveable toward and away from the bed member anddefining therewith a pressing space, said bed member having one endprojecting beyond the corresponding end of said press punch and acharging device above said one end of said bed member, an endless grateband having an upper reach on top of said bed member and a lower reachbeneath said bed member, said grate band comprising longitudinallyspaced transverse bars and flexible elements at the ends of said barsinterconnecting the bars, an endless filter cloth having an upper reachresting on top of the upper reach of said grate band and a lower reachbeneath said bed member, deviating rollers at opposite ends of said bedmember about which the grate band and filter cloth pass, said filtercloth and grate band being moveable to convey material supplied to thefilter cloth by said charging device into pressing position in thepress, drive means for intermittently driving said filter cloth andgrate band a distance about equal to the length of the pressing space inthe press, control means controlling the operation of at least saidpress punch for controlling the pressing of material in said pressingspace, and a brush device spanning the grate band and having workingmovement thereof in a direction substantially parallel to longitudinaldirection of transverse bars in combination therewith, said transversebars being spaced apart such a distance that there is provided heightgreater than double the spacing from each other for the flow of liquidtherebetween during a pressing operation to be substantially pressurefree subject to complete cleaning being made possible between transversebars to assure flow of liquid free of turbidity and unencumbered byadhering residue that would reduce cross section as to flow ofliquid.
 1. In a press for pressing juice from fruit mash and the like: abed member, a press punch moveable toward and away from the bed memberand defining therewith a pressing space, said bed member having one endprojecting beyond the corresponding end of said press punch and acharging device above said one end of said bed member, an endless grateband having an upper reach on top of said bed member and a lower reachbeneath said bed member, said grate band comprising longitudinallyspaced transverse bars and flexible elements at the ends of said barsinterconnecting the bars, an endless filter cloth having an upper reachresting on top of the upper reach of said grate band and a lower reachbeneath said bed member, deviating rollers at opposite ends of said bedmember about which the grate band and filter cloth pass, said filtercloth and grate band being moveable to convey material supplied to thefilter cloth by said charging device into pressing position in thepress, drive means for intermittently driving said filter cloth andgrate band a distance about equal to the length of the pressing space inthe press, control means controlling the operation of at least saidpress punch for controlling the pressing of material in said pressingspace, and a brush device spanning the grate band and having workingmovement thereof in a direction substantially parallel to longitudinaldirection of transverse bars in combination therewith, said transversebars being spaced apart such a distance that there is provided heightgreater than double the spacing from each other for the flow of liquidtherebetween during a pressing operation to be substantially pressurefree subject to complete cleaning being made possible between transversebars to assure flow of liquid free of turbidity and unencumbered byadhering residue that would reduce cross section as to flow of liquid.2. In a press for pressing juice from fruit mash and the like: a bedmember, a press punch moveable toward and away from the bed member anddefining therewith a pressing space, said bed member having one endprojecting beyond the corresponding end of said press punch and acharging device above said one end of said bed member, an endless grateband having an upper reach on top of said bed member and a lower reachbeneath said bed member, said grate band comprising longitudinallyspaced transverse bars and flexible elements at the ends of said barsinterconnecting the bars, an endless filter cloth having an upper reachresting on top of the upper reach of said grate band and a lower reachbeneath said bed member, deviating rollers at opposite ends of said bedmember about which the grate band and filter cloth pass, said filtercloth and grate band being moveable to convey material supplied to thefilter cloth by said charging device into pressing position in thepress, drive means for intermittently driving said filter cloth andgrate band a distance about equal to the length of the pressing space inthe press, control means controlling the operation of at least saidpress punch for controlling the pressing of material in said pressingspace, said transverse bars being spaced apart such a distance that theflow of liquid therebetween during a pressing operation is substantiallypressure free, elastic strips being mounted on said filter cloth alongthe lateral edges of the region where material to be pressed isdeposited on the filter cloth, and elastic strips on said press puncharranged in opposition to the elastic strips on the filter cloth forcooperation therewith during a pressing operation to confine thematerial being pressed in the lateral direction.
 3. In a press accordingto claim 2 in which said elastic strips are formed of a foamed material.4. In a press for pressing juice from fruit mash and the like: a bedmember, a press punch moveable toward and away from the bed member anddefining therewith a pressing space, said bed member having one endprojecting beyond the corresponding end of said press punch and acharging device above said one end of said bed member, an endless grateband having an upper reach on top of said bed member and a lower reachbeneath said bed member, said grate band comprising longitudinallyspaced transverse bars and flexible elements at the ends of said barsinterconnectIng the bars, an endless filter cloth having an upper reachresting on top of the upper reach of said grate band and a lower reachbeneath said bed member, deviating rollers at opposite ends of said bedmember about which the grate band and filter cloth pass, said filtercloth and grate band being moveable to convey material supplied to thefilter cloth by said charging device into pressing position in thepress, drive means for intermittently driving said filter cloth andgrate band a distance about equal to the length of the pressing space inthe press, control means controlling the operation of at least saidpress punch for controlling the pressing of material in said pressingspace, said transverse bars being spaced apart such a distance that theflow of liquid therebetween during a pressing operation is substantiallypressure free, V-belts being provided on said filter cloth at the insideof the marginal portions thereof and laterally outwardly from thelateral edges of said grate band, and deviating rollers for said filtercloth at the ends of the reaches thereof and grooved to receive saidV-belts.
 5. A press according to claim 4 which includes brush means forcleaning said grate band and moveable laterally to the grate band andsubstantially parallel to said transverse bars and engaging said grateband on the filter cloth side thereof.
 6. In a press for pressing juicefrom fruit mash and the like: a bed member, a press punch moveabletoward and away from the bed member and defining therewith a pressingspace, said bed member having one end projecting beyond thecorresponding end of said press punch and a charging device above saidone end of said bed member, an endless grate band having an upper reachon top of said bed member and a lower reach beneath said bed member,said grate band comprising longitudinally spaced transverse bars andflexible elements at the ends of said bars interconnecting the bars, anendless filter cloth having an upper reach resting on top of the upperreach of said grate band and a lower reach beneath said bed member,deviating rollers at opposite ends of said bed member about which thegrate band and filter cloth pass, said filter cloth and grate band beingmoveable to convey material supplied to the filter cloth by saidcharging device into pressing position in the press, drive means forintermittently driving said filter cloth and grate band a distance aboutequal to the length of the pressing space in the press, control meanscontrolling the operation of at least said press punch for controllingthe pressing of material in said pressing space, said transverse barsbeing spaced apart such a distance that the flow of liquid therebetweenduring a pressing operation is substantially pressure free, brush meansfor cleaning said grate band and moveable laterally to the grate bandand substantially parallel to said transverse bars and engaging saidgrate band on the filter cloth side thereof, said brush means comprisingan endless band having brush bodies thereon, and support rollers at thesides of said grate band for supporting said endless band and at leastone roller being driven, said brush bodies engaging a substantial lengthof said grate band.
 7. A press according to claim 6 in which said brushmeans engages said grate band outwardly from the end of said bed memberwhich is opposite said charging device, and a collector beneath saidgrate band to receive material dislodged therefrom by said brush means.8. A press according to claim 6 which includes a cover cloth on the sideof said press punch which faces said bed member.
 9. A press according toclaim 6, in which said brush means is located at the exit side of thepressing space over an essentially horizontally extending section ofsaid grate band and below said grate band there is a container forcollecting pulp material which has been removed by said brush means. 10.A press according to claim 6, in which said filter cloth is free ofrestriction laterallY outside of fruit mash receiving location.
 11. Apress according to claim 6 in which said bed member is substantiallyplanar and said transverse bars are spaced apart about 3 millimeterswhile being about 8 millimeters in height, the corners of said barsfacing said filter cloth being rounded.